Chapter Thirty-Four: Out of the Forest

【Player 2020: Sister Rose, if you have any other questions, you can talk to me.】

Liang Yi did not want to dwell further on the subject of appearance anxiety with Sister Rose.

【Rose: Okay.】

Before Rose replied, Liang Yi had received a long string of messages from her, explaining why she was so obsessed with makeup.

The content essentially detailed how Sister Rose had been a tomboy as a child, frequently catching fish in streams and climbing trees or walls. However, her parents were traditional and believed it was improper for a girl to behave that way, insisting from a young age that she wear dresses and keep her hair long. Naturally, Rose rebelled. Whenever her hair grew long, she would cut it herself; as for the dresses, she would simply use a needle and thread to sew them into pant legs.

For this, she was frequently scolded and beaten by her family. Even at school, her unique appearance and unruly hair made her unpopular with both teachers and students, leading to school bullying. Rose was not crushed; instead, she saved up money to learn Taekwondo and beat up those who bullied her. Physically, she was strong enough to thoroughly trounce her tormentors, but psychologically, she remained affected.

Watching the pretty girls easily win the favor of teachers and male classmates while she, despite her immense efforts, could not, left a teenage girl with a facade of indifference but a heart riddled with wounds. Before high school, she was liked by no one and had no friends. After the college entrance examination, in a moment of impulse, Rose bought a large amount of cosmetics, began secretly learning to apply makeup, and let her hair grow out.

When she started her freshman year of college, upperclassmen enthusiastically helped her move her things, and classmates in her major and clubs proactively befriended her. Thus, Rose began to change herself. Later, cosmetics became indispensable to her, to the point where she felt she had to wear makeup whenever she saw anyone. If she went a day without it, her hands would tremble, her heart would race, and she would want to flee upon seeing anyone she knew.

Liang Yi felt distressed reading this, wondering if there was any law mandating that women must dress up; everyone has different ways of living. He deleted and rewrote his words of comfort in the chat box, yet he felt they were all too hollow.

【Rose: No need for comforting words. I realized something was wrong early on, so I’ve already seen a psychiatrist.】
【Rose: This psychological issue has improved a lot now. The reason I still need cosmetics is merely to please myself.】
【Rose: So, there’s no need to worry about this.】
【Player 2020: Understood.】

Liang Yi deleted the chat history, leaving only the simple word "Understood." He sighed, thinking of the saying that childhood trauma stays with one for a lifetime. Closing the chat interface with Rose, Liang Yi clicked on [View Orders]. After browsing, he found none of the supplies he needed, so he returned to the [Channel] interface to check the chat logs.

【Player 7865: Can't sleep in the middle of the night, and there's no entertainment, why don't we play word chain?】
【Player 4563: Sure, I'll start: Live to the end (huo dao zui hou).】
【Huhu: Did the person above drop out of elementary school? Is "Live to the end" an idiom?】
【Player 21456: Who cares if it's an idiom? Let me continue: Shameless (hou yan wu chi).】
【Player 9635: That's not standard. Let me try: Surpass the predecessor (hou lai ju shang).】
...
Late at night, everyone could only huddle inside their vehicles, so they began to entertain themselves out of boredom.

【GouGouGO: Brothers, I think I've actually walked out of the forest.】

Suddenly, amidst the dense stream of word chains and lyric games, Liang Yi saw a player claiming to have walked out of the forest! Liang Yi scrolled through the messages, found the player's name, and clicked on their profile without hesitation. The profile was empty. Liang Yi frowned, beginning to suspect the person was a fraud.

After exiting the profile, he saw the [Channel] chat messages pouring in relentlessly.

【Player 5986: For real? Brother, tell me how you did it!】
【Player 11111: Obviously fake. Only fools would believe it.】
【Big Bowl Wide Noodles: Where'd he go? Brother, come back and reply.】
【Player 9899: The game rules state we must stay in our vehicles after 7 PM. It's almost 8 PM now. If he dared to drive out, he was likely snatched by a monster. He probably posted this ambiguous message to trick us, not wanting us to survive.】
【Player 777: The person above makes sense.】
【Player 7777: To the person above, look, I have one more 7 than you.】
...
The players quickly forgot about the news and moved on to other topics. Liang Yi scanned through, found nothing useful, and closed the game panel, leaning back against the carriage to rest. He thought to himself that he must trade for more vehicle upgrade cards to expand the interior so he could get a good night's sleep.

However, sleeping would definitely require a bed. He wondered if a bed could be opened from a treasure chest or if it could be crafted in [Creation].

He checked immediately, opening the game panel and quickly finding the bed icon under the [Creation] tab. Making a bed required a blueprint, as well as wood, latex, and wire. Liang Yi had assumed making a bed only required wood for a wooden frame, but apparently, this was crafting a Simmons mattress! Looking at his tricycle, Liang Yi realized that even if he made one, his little vehicle wouldn't fit it!

Still, the vehicle could be upgraded, so he needed to prepare in advance. Thinking that he was in a forest where trees were everywhere, he could certainly chop some down to prepare. To chop trees, he would need an axe, and crafting an axe required a blueprint and iron bars. In [Creation], only wood planks and wooden sticks didn't require blueprints; everything else did.

Therefore, Liang Yi opened [Trade] to post an order.

【Player 2020: Need one axe crafting blueprint, private message me.】
【Player 2020: Need one iron bar, willing to trade for one pack of instant noodles and one bottle of mineral water.】

After the trade was posted, the iron bar was soon acquired. As for the axe blueprint, someone reached out.

【PickledFishMyLove: Hello, I have an axe crafting blueprint. Just give me a few bottles of water.】
【PickledFishMyLove: Since entering this game, I've opened quite a few chests, but I haven't found a single bottle of water, and I haven't even seen a river. I'm losing it.】
【Player 2020: Sure, I'll give you three bottles of mineral water.】

Liang Yi still had eleven bottles of mineral water, so giving away three was no loss.

【PickledFishMyLove: Deal, thank you.】

Soon, the trade was completed. Liang Yi didn't delay; he placed the axe blueprint, wooden sticks, and iron bar onto the workbench. Moments later, an axe appeared in the synthesis slot.